Suchergebnisse

This article examines the extent to which social policies in post‐War Norway fit three key features of the social development model, namely productivism, social investment and universalism. The historical review shows that the pursuit of a social development model changes in line with economic development and the expansion of the welfare state. It reveals that policies to promote full employment have been central to the country's economic and welfare policies throughout the post‐War period. Nevertheless, the extent to which the productivist objective has been emphasised and implemented has fluctuated over time. In contrast to the 1970s and 1980s, the 1990s witnessed a strengthening of the work ethic but also a continued commitment to de‐commodification. The extent to which the combination of productivism and social investment is pursued is examined with reference to services for the insured and uninsured. The article concludes that the ways in which the social development perspective understands and defends universalism and social investment only partially applies to the mature Norwegian welfare state.

The Netherlands and Norway are among the many countries that have faced serious challenges to the sustainability of their social security systems in recent years. In this article we examine the growth in benefit schemes related to illness and disability since they have been one source of particular concern in both countries. The Netherlands came to face more serious and persistent problems earlier than Norway in this policy area. Our analysis reveals significant differences with respect to the underlying assumptions in the social protection systems for the long-term sick and disabled as they were originally constructed in the 1960s. We identify a general emphasis on 'integration' in the Norwegian social policy discourse and legislation up until the late 1980s, whereas the Dutch legislation in the same period tended to focus on autonomy and individual 'choice'. In the article we compare the reforms introduced in both countries to control the growth in sickness and disability schemes, by means of a common analytical and conceptual framework. 'Incentives' have occupied an increasingly prominent position in the policy discourse in both countries. While the Norwegian development may largely be seen as a return to and revival of partly forgotten, partly eroded assumptions behind the original social protection scheme, the Dutch policy shift amounts to a more fundamental reconstruction of the whole social security system.